(19 June 2017 - 10:16 PM)
I'm in agreement with you Tony and I would hazzard a guess that Sony's own exclusives will be impressive enough that people wont be wishing they were on XB1X much like the X1's exclusives were technically as good as anything else.

(20 June 2017 - 06:37 AM)
I am quite impressed with the ps4 exclusives like days gone where there are tons of zombies on screen, and the game still maintains the frame rate and graphical fidelity. It is also no typical shooter where you endlessly just shoot down zombies. You have to utilise the environments and stealth to play. Story looks to be good as well.

(30 June 2017 - 01:36 AM)
The SNES classic .... only 20 somewhat games is a bit of a disappointment. The urge to buy a raspberry pi with a snes case is much higher then dropping 100 on something with corded controllers and 20 games

(09 July 2017 - 04:44 AM)
So Kyle / Direwolf: I just recently picked up Rocket League again after not playing since the first month or so. Still great fun, but I was wondering if you could suggest any You Tube tutorials or anything for new-ish players. Anything come to mind?

(05 August 2017 - 08:15 PM)
I beat the new Doom on my PS4 a few weeks back; really fun game. Once you beat it, make sure to watch the credits - they're actually one of the best cinematics I've seen and really kick ass (you'll know what I mean when you check them out).

(12 August 2017 - 04:09 AM)
I completed my 1st playthrough of hellblade earlier today. PS4 pro suports both a 60hz mode and a high res 30fps mode. The game is a flawed masterpiece IMO. Gorgeous visuals and excellent overall story and presentation let down by a sometimes painful combat system. The combat itself is not bad, but the targeting system is complete rubbish and some of the combat scenarios plain stink - i wont spoil anything. I'd describe the combat as being like Ryse Son of Rome minus the button prompts and dismemberment. Definately worth a look for the price.

A coworker lent me his PS4 VR headset so I have been testing out the demos a bit. I am super impressed with how it all works, even the gameplay for the most part, but am having a hard time getting used to how bad the games look overall. I'm pretty sure Driveclub looks worse than a PS3 game in VR. Overall I am completely sold on VR, but am leaning towards one of the PC versions currently.

Are you playing on an original PS4 or PS4 Pro? A lot of the demos, which were not optimized for the Pro did look pretty mediocre but were significantly improved when I played the full games and made sure they were patched. I tried Eve Valkyrie yesterday and the difference was pretty noticeable; still sub-1080p but definitely sharper and some more graphical effects as well. VR Worlds looked a lot better too. The complete Resident Evil demo is an improvement over Kitchen as well.

So, I got mine at launch but I really didn't use it that much. I now work for Oculus, so regardless, I am going to be a little biased when it comes to reviewing a competing product, but that's not to say that I didn't come away impressed or that I regret the purchase.

Point blank, Rez is probably my favorite game of all time. When I found out that they were doing Rez for PlayStation VR, I made sure to to get a preorder in. Now, I wasn't able to play Rez until last week because I bought a physical copy through iam8bit, and they delayed the physical launch of the game and I got it two months after it was made available for download. Not only that, they ended up charging $10 extra for the physical copy and teased a foil cover for the physical version. When I got my copy, there was no foil cover and the overall quality of the cover and the disc was that of a bootleg. iam8bit really dropped the ball on their first ever game launch. Just download it if you were ever considering getting a physical copy. This game is 15 years old and it seemed like it was made for VR way back then. Actually being able to play it in VR now just blows my mind.

But other than that, the game is better than it ever was. There is no positional tracking, but it uses the headset's orientation tracking so you are always trailing your character at all times. The artwork is still simple, but because of this, it looks amazing in VR. The framerate is fast and mixing the targeting controls with the controller and the headset's orientation tracking actually allows the user to have much better control than the versions previously released on the Dreamcast, PS2 and X360.

As far as the quality of the PSVR? Well, it's not a Rift, but it's pretty damn good. The outside in tracking uses visible led lighting unlike the Rift's invisible IR lighting, and there are less tracking lights that are on the PSVR, so the hand/controller tracking is a little wonky in comparison to what the Rift has going for it. The resolution of the headset is also a little lower, but it runs at a max 120hz as opposed to the 90hz of the Rift, and if the game takes advantage of the max 120fps, then it is amazing sight to see. The Rift is lighter and comes with quality headphones, where as the PSVR is a little more bulky and you can use your own headphones. As long as you already have a decent pair, then you should be fine.

All in all, I came away really liking the PSVR. Yeah, on paper it's not as good as the Rift, but it is still a damn good headset and for only $400, it's a pretty damn good deal.

Thanks for the impressions ErbilT. For me the PSVR's biggest strength is its relative ease of set up. I was able to set up my PS4 Pro and PSVR and get gaming in about 20 minutes; I don't know if that's possible with a PC based solution. Despite the relative bulkiness of the PSVR headset, it is very comfortable to wear and Sony deserves props for its design which nicely balances its weight over the forehead.

I tried the Rez demo and quite honestly I didn't care all that much for it. I can't remember the specifics now but I'm pretty sure you had to target the enemies using the controller (Battlezone does the same thing, forcing you to use the right stick to target enemies); I've much preferred games where you track targets by just looking at them like Gunjack. I think the game could have benefited from offering a few more control schemes,

Are you playing on an original PS4 or PS4 Pro? A lot of the demos, which were not optimized for the Pro did look pretty mediocre but were significantly improved when I played the full games and made sure they were patched. I tried Eve Valkyrie yesterday and the difference was pretty noticeable; still sub-1080p but definitely sharper and some more graphical effects as well. VR Worlds looked a lot better too. The complete Resident Evil demo is an improvement over Kitchen as well.

Nice Youtube presentation, BTW.

Playing on a launch PS4. Now I need to track down someone with a PS4 Pro and some full games to test it out haha. The only non-demo game I got to play is Rush of Blood, which was pretty damn cool! Got my wife to play it a bit and she loved it too but would get very freaked out. I still just can't help but feel that in general the games just don't look that great, and long-term I'd probably wish I had gotten Rift or Vive unless the PS4 library blows them out of the water. Having a really difficult time talking myself into one or the other despite wanting a VR system.

I decided to pick up Driveclub VR today. I'd held off on this game for a while because of all the negative comments about the graphics but having now played it, I'm really glad I got it. To my eyes it looks a wee bit better on the PS4 Pro than on the demo disc (which was unpatched). While the graphics are still coarse, the game's level of immersion really makes up for it. Being able to look around your car, use the rearview and sideview mirrors while racing or just turn around to see the cars chasing you thru the rear window is a lot of fun. As you lean forward or backward you really get the feeling that you're in the cockpit of a super-expensive exotic car. Even better, the replays let you view your race from numerous angles while still giving you freedom to look around. It's an experience which words cannot do justice to. I ran a few races and felt no ill effects and, interestingly, even though the resolution was lower than a standard PS4 (and probably a PS3) game, I never felt I needed a map or racing line as I was able to judge distances and curves just by sight, something I cannot always do in 2D racing games, even though they are higher res.

I finished off Rush of Blood. If you don't like spiders there is level near the end that will absolutely freak you out. They don't bother me too much so I was ok but one part was still quite icky. The final boss is absolutely huge and VR tricks your brain into thinking you are fighting a gigantic monster in a way a traditional 2D shooter never could. I was also really happy with the accuracy and responsiveness of the Move controllers; they worked great and I never had tracking issues.

I also picked up and briefly tried Eve: Valkyrie. All I can say is wow! I never renewed by PS+ subscription so I could only try the single player content but the sensation of flying your fighter in space, engaging in dogfights, flying around and through capital ships and asteroids is just amazing. The recent PS4 Pro patch upped the resolution considerably from the demo. Once I finish the single player portion (which admittedly is pretty thin) I'll have to renew my PS+ sub to try some online stuff.

So has anybody else tried Resident Evil 7 in VR? I got the game yesterday and played for about an hour today (just got past the part where I meet the family). Quite honestly, I don't get all the screaming and terror this game seems to be inducing in people. Some parts are gross but I was never really scared as the scares are all telegraphed. Well done game though and very atmospheric. I'm usually not a fan of survival horror games (Dead Space being the only exception) but this one is pretty good so far.

I haven't tried it in VR yet. I don't find it that scary in non-VR mode and overall - despite some annoyances - I feel it's quite well done.

Not a fan of the default pistol handling and haven't found an adjustment I'm happy with yet. I find myself missing too many headshots and wasting too much ammo - body shots are a waste of time. Where I'm at I don't have any useful melee weapons, which makes the whole experience annoying. I really do enjoy the exploration, simple puzzles and atmosphere and find that to be a lot more fun than dealing with enemies.

I get they're trying to introduce tension by keeping resources limited, but they're only limited due to the clumsy combat that causes me to unneccesarily waste those resources. I don't find the combat all that fun and just want to get it out of the way so I can advance the story.

I love RE7. I don't own any VR set, but it looks good enough and runs at a solid 60 fps on base ps4. I don't find the combat to be clunky at all. The aim controls are pretty responsive to me. The default aim controls are just right to me. Enemies do move a lot when you take aim, making you miss, but it adds to the tension when they are coming right at you like this. Doing a quick-turn and keeping a distance and resuming to shoot helps. I really enjoyed the boss fight with jack with that chainsaw. You can swing to block his attacks and counter. I am discovering more new tactics on my 2nd play through in that fight that I never knew I could do the 1st time. Overall, a nice game and a return to form after the past 3 games. I have been hearing about how immersive the VR experience is despite the downgraded visuals, and that playing on ps4 pro is a lot better.

I haven't tried it in VR yet. I don't find it that scary in non-VR mode and overall - despite some annoyances - I feel it's quite well done.

Not a fan of the default pistol handling and haven't found an adjustment I'm happy with yet. I find myself missing too many headshots and wasting too much ammo - body shots are a waste of time. Where I'm at I don't have any useful melee weapons, which makes the whole experience annoying. I really do enjoy the exploration, simple puzzles and atmosphere and find that to be a lot more fun than dealing with enemies.

I get they're trying to introduce tension by keeping resources limited, but they're only limited due to the clumsy combat that causes me to unneccesarily waste those resources. I don't find the combat all that fun and just want to get it out of the way so I can advance the story.

So far I give it a 7 out of 10. Solid but let down by the combat.

The aim is actually a little better in VR because you aim the reticle by just looking, which I find works far better than aiming with the sticks.

Based on my little playtime the boss encounters are shaping up to be the most annoying parts for me as well. Also annoying are the areas where you have no chance of hurting the person attacking you and can only run and hide. I find that kind of helplessness in games off-putting.

I got RE7 mostly because of my curiosity to see if I could get thru it in VR and based on my playtime that seems to be the way to play this game if you really want to immerse yourself in the game's atmostphere; but quite honestly if it was only a normal 2D game I probably would have passed it by without even giving it a second thought.

What this game really does is make my pine for a VR version of Dead Space. Now that would be one scary ride.

VR would have worked even better with that cancelled silent hills game. That P.T demo was scary as hell, and I always wondered how will the full game would be like had Konami not treated their staff and kojima like crap and actually supported them...

So I'm reading that the v4.50 firmware update has some nice PSVR improvements: it adds BluRay 3D support and the picture quality of cinema mode appears to be significantly improved. I'm not in the 4.50 beta (I signed up for it last night, don't know if I'll get in) these are welcome upgrades for PSVR as they will add more content and make the experience that much better.

Looks like the next update is going to be significant. PS4 is finally getting external hard drive support and a boost mode to let existing ps4 games take advantage of the pro. This update can't come soon enough.

VR would have worked even better with that cancelled silent hills game. That P.T demo was scary as hell, and I always wondered how will the full game would be like had Konami not treated their staff and kojima like crap and actually supported them...

I finished Resident Evil 7 today; played the whole game in VR. I've never been a fan of the series but I had a very good time with it. The story was well done, and there was an actual ending and not some moronic "to be continued..." cliffhanger. The VR really added to the experience and made exploring the environments far more immersive. I wasn't wild about how it kept switching to cinema mode whenever there was a cutscene (especially in the final boss fight) but it's definitely one of the best showcases for PSVR so far. Not really interested in the DLC right now, but I might check them out if there's ever a sale.

I also decided to try out Dirt Rally as it got a VR patch today. Visually the game is a step up from Driveclub VR but boy oh boy is the game difficult. There's a really steep learning curve on this one and I hope Codemasters' decision to make this their first foray into VR doesn't backfire on them if console players get turned off by the difficulty.

So has anyone else been playing with PSVR? And has anyone else picked up Farpoint and the new Aim Controller. Got mine today and played for a bit. As to some impressions...

The Aim has created an absolutely new paradigm in control; movement is fluid and being able to move and aim independently yet at the same time is amazing, as is the feeling of holding an actual weapon in your hands that the Aim provides. This is far more fun and immersive than a control pad or any keyboard and mouse scheme. Tracking has been perfect for me so far; drift has been non-existent.

As to the actual game, visually, it looks very good but still a little coarse around the edges at times. Kind of surprised the cinematics weren't sharper. Still, it succeeds at conveying that sense of being in another place. Voice acting is very good and the weapons I've unlocked so far have a nice weight to them and are fun to use. Difficulty is pretty good but the game can definitely overload you with enemies at times. Ideally, I'd like to see some kind of a difficulty select option so I can go thru it once at an easier pace just to take in the story and environments. I've read the next update will add in the ability to switch stick functions; as a lefty I think I'll feel a lot more comfortable moving/strafing with the rear stick and turning with the forward stick.

Once again thanks for your impressions Tony. I have never heard of this aim controller, I am curious.

They really promoted the heck out of it here. It doesn't really look like a gun (and I think that's deliberate) but once you have the headset on that is a non-issue. It has every button, stick and the d-pad of a standard DS4 and is very comfortable to hold. Not too many games support it right now (Farpoint, Dick Wilde and a forthcoming patch for Brookhaven Experiment) but it has gotten almost universal praise from those who review it so I'm hopeful more games will support it going forward. It is currently only available as part of a bundle with Farpoint and is pretty much sold out over here.

I picked up Star Trek Bridge Crew last week and did some online missions over the weekend. As a longtime Trekkie this was like candy for me and I ate it up. Just sitting in the captain's chair on the original bridge was quite the trip. There are all kinds of little easter eggs for Trek fans and the visuals are quite impressive and immersive. I did a few online MP missions and had a lot of fun as well. The online experience is dependent on finding the right players but there were a lot of Trek fans so most missions went well even if we didn't always achieve all the objectives. Single player is quite doable as well; playing as the Captain you can issue orders to the other stations and other than an annoying habit of the helmsman always flying right into mines the AI is pretty good at following and executing orders. Really fun, well done game, especially for Trek fans.